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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29386173">You're Everything I know that Makes me Believe I'm not Alone</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LStar/pseuds/LStar'>LStar</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Cactiflower [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>OMORI (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, basil cries a lot, ill prolly make more cactiflower content though :), kels a himbo, not really angsty but kinda???, really its just a smol misunderstanding, trilogy finale!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 07:47:15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,857</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29386173</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LStar/pseuds/LStar</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Basil finally does it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aubrey/Kim (OMORI) (mentioned), Kel/Basil (OMORI)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Cactiflower [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2124342</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>63</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>You're Everything I know that Makes me Believe I'm not Alone</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>sorry for the wait!!! I forgot Omori existed. I found my cactiflower wip while going through my google docs and I was like "OH YEAH" so woohoo I finished it real quick!!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>
  <span>Several days had passed since Basil spoke to Sunny over the phone about him and Kel. It’d given him time to not just think about how he was going to go about this, but how he could present his gift to Kel. He stared at it, resting on his desk, waiting to be used. He thought about giving it to Kel at school, but there were always so many people around. He wasn’t sure if he could bring himself to do that. But just visiting him at home felt awkward and invasive.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He needed to ask for help. He got up and grabbed the phone, dialing in a number. He waited.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aubrey! Hey, it’s Basil.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh, hey Basil. What’s up? I can’t talk long, Kim and I are about to head out.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um...well it’s actually kind of about that. How did you and Kim get together?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What’s with the weird question? Anyway...Kim confessed to me one day at the pizza place in town. We were just eating pizza and talking, and she said something about how I’m cute even with a mouthful of pizza, and just kinda casually mentioned having a crush on me.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is...is that it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah. Pretty much. Confessions really aren’t so dramatic in real life like they are in movies or video games.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Why? Are you finally gonna try to confess to Kel?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“H-huh?! You know about that?!”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“About your crush on him? Basil, literally everyone except Kel knows. But that’s because Kel is dumber than a bag of rocks.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil laughed nervously. “Yeah…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Anyway, if you wanna confess to him, don’t psych yourself up too much. It’ll go fine. It doesn’t have to be big or anything.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess so...thanks Aubrey.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah. No problem. I’ll talk to you later, Basil. You and Kel better be dating next time we talk,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> she teased before hanging up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil sighed and hung up afterwards. He bit his lip and glanced back at his gift. He tapped his fingers against his leg before getting an idea. He picked the phone back up and dialed another number.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kel’s residence! This is Kel!” Kel answered the phone happily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil rolled his eyes and smiled. “Hi Kel.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil!” Kel sounded much more excited now. “Hey! What’s up? Rare for you to be the one to call! Did you wanna hang out? I’m free!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah- yeah,” Basil laughed a little. “Um...how about we go to the park?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure! Do you want me to pick you up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, I’ll meet you there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you say so. I’ll be there after I finish eating lunch!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay. See you soon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep! Bye Basil!” Kel hung up. Basil hung up the phone and got up, slipping his shoes on and grabbing his gift. He hurried out the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made it to the park not long later and sat in a soft patch of grass, holding the gift close to himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Several minutes later and Kel was running over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil! Basil, I’m here!” Kel called, stopping next to him. He had bacon in his hands, and he was still chewing his food. He popped the last bit in his mouth and brushed his hands off his basketball shorts. He offered a hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil accepted and slowly stood up, keeping the gift held close to his chest. Once he was fully standing, he crossed his arms as if to hide the gift.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel tilted his head to the side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’cha got there, Basil?” he asked curiously.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A-ah...um...well...I just wanted to...give you this,” Basil mumbled, moving to hand the gift over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel’s eyes widened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The gift was a small glass container with some of Basil’s favorite pictures inside of it, as well as a couple selected flowers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A red rose, for romance and love.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A sunflower, for dedication and adoration.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A yellow peony, for new beginnings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil…” Kel murmured, opening the box with surprising care. He looked at the flowers and the pictures. He had a gentle expression on his face. Basil felt anxious, averting his gaze so he was staring at the grass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I...you know...um…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I really...appreciate all that you’ve done...for me. Over the past several months. Even before Sunny left…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh! Is this like a thank you gift?” Kel brightened. “Aww, you didn’t have to, Basil! That’s what friends are for!”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Friends…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Did Kel really only see him as a friend? Basil...didn’t want that. He didn’t want to be friendzoned again. He didn’t want to be hopelessly pining after another crush of his for years, just to later move on and repeat the same thing. He wanted love too.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tears sprung up in his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Why..?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Why couldn’t he just...be loved?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Was he really that unlovable?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil’s lower lip quivered. He didn’t want a repeat of what happened with Sunny to happen with Kel. He wanted his feelings to be known.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil?” Kel sounded startled. “Wait, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It...it’s not…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not..! It’s not a thank you gift!” Basil burst out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel looked stunned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want you to think that...I’m grateful to you for all that you’ve done but..!” Basil felt a lump get stuck in his throat. “Y-you’re...not the brightest at this, Kel! I like you!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like you too, Basil…” Kel looked confused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, I mean I </span>
  <em>
    <span>like</span>
  </em>
  <span> you. As in, like the gay way!” Basil finally broke down into tears, feeling overwhelmed. “I thought you were just a good friend at first but as time went on I...started to see you differently. I really, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> like you, Kel! I do, I...I…” he wiped at his tears. “I’m sorry, I just...I want to...say how I feel. I understand you don’t feel the same way as I do, but I don’t want my feelings to go unnoticed..!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel was silent for a minute, moving to set the gift Basil had given him down on the ground.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil let out a hiccup, sniffling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I-it’s fine, Kel. I just wanted to tell you. That’s all. Excuse me.” Basil started to hurry past Kel to go home and cry. He had only taken a few steps away when he felt Kel’s hand grab his wrist.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“H-hold on, Basil! Let me talk!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil stopped, keeping his head lowered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jeez...Basil, what makes you think I don’t like you too?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I...well you just said...we’re friends…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course we’re friends. That doesn’t mean I don’t like you back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil’s eyes widened. He looked up and back at Kel, who’s brows were furrowed. “But…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basil, I’ve liked you for a really long time now. A </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> long time,” Kel emphasized, “honestly, I thought you were still in love with Sunny, so I never said anything. I was just really surprised when you confessed to me!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve...liked...me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! Why else would I always only listen to you above everyone else?” Kel grinned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought it was just because we were childhood friends…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, that is part of it. But even when we were kids, I liked you!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! Oh man,” Kel laughed, looking a little emotional himself, “I’ve been wanting this for years and now that it’s actually happening, I don’t even know what to say!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil stared, wide eyed. “You’re actually serious..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Serious as the plague!” Kel’s hand slipped from Basil’s wrist and gently gripped his hand. “I love you, Basil. I really do. So...don’t cry. There’s no need to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil blinked at his tears, and pulled his hand away from Kel’s. Kel let him go, watching him. For a moment, Basil couldn’t breathe. He wasn’t sure what to make of this. This had been the last thing he expected. He was overwhelmed. Would they become boyfriends now..? He wasn’t sure.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel smiled and opened his arms.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s when Basil cracked. He burst into another fit of tears and lurched forward, burying his face in Kel’s chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel’s arms wrapped around him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There, there…” Kel’s voice was almost uncharacteristically soft. “It’s okay Basil. I like you too. It’s okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not crying because I’m upset…” Basil mumbled, his voice muffled. “I’m crying because I’m happy…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh!” Kel sounded happier. “That’s good then! Cry all you want then!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil laughed a little. His grip tightened on Kel. They stayed there for what felt like hours, before separating. Basil felt tired from all his tears. He wiped his eyes. Kel watched him with a fond grin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Basil. Do you wanna spend the night at my place tonight?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil looked up at him. “Ah...sure…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Great! I wanna introduce you to my mom as my boyfriend! If...that’s okay, at least..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil’s eyes widened. His lips parted for a second before curving up into a small smile. “Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel grabbed the gift from the ground with one hand, the other grabbing Basil’s hand. “Great! Come on, let’s go!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“N-now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah! Now!” Kel tugged Basil in the direction of his home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>_____</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It went over well. Kel’s mother had been stunned and needed a moment alone, but his father accepted it immediately. It didn’t take too long for his mother to accept him though. Apparently she simply hadn’t thought Kel was gay and it just took her by surprise. Basil was welcomed warmly though.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel had even called Hero to tell him, who also accepted him immediately.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil felt a little awkward. Thankfully, though, Kel had just wanted his family to know, and was willing to go at Basil’s pace on letting their friends know.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil sat on Kel’s bed, his legs brought up to his chest as Kel floundered around, looking for a good place to put the gift Basil had given him. He settled for his nightstand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kel, I didn’t bring any pajamas…” Basil finally said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh? Oh, that’s fine! You can borrow mine!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yours are too big for me…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aww, it’ll look cute though!” Kel laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil blushed. “Cute..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel leaped on the bed, sitting next to him and throwing an arm around him. “Yep! Cute! You’re always cute, though!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil hid his face. Kel laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They fell into a comfortable silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Basil.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mhm..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can I try something?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil glanced up at him curiously. “Yeah..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel moved his hand so it was gently underneath Basil’s chin. “Can I...kiss you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Basil’s eyes widened. He paused for a moment, and then nodded slightly, unable to fully nod because of Kel’s hand. “...Sure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel shifted a little, tilting his chin up more. Basil shut his eyes. There was silence, and then he felt warm, chapped lips press against his. It was awkward. It really wasn’t even a good kiss. But it was fine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They could always practice, after all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel pulled away slowly. “How was that..?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Awful,” Basil answered honestly, “your lips hurt and you grazed my teeth and bumped my nose.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel sputtered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay, though.” Basil moved so he was sitting on Kel’s lap, albeit shyly. He wrapped his arms around Kel’s neck. “We’ll just...try again…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Kel softened. “Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They kissed again, and not for the last time.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Look okay you may have noticed but the titles are song lyrics. This song literally gives me so much Cactiflower vibes it's insane. Michelle Branch is our Cactiflower icon<br/>https://youtu.be/u-6mOPzWGwg</p></blockquote></div></div>
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